Afuri Kara Kurenai Downtown Portland

*Restaurant is permanently closed*

There are certain restaurants that have so many locations in the world, you won't have a problem finding an outpost in a major city.  We all know that Greater Vancouver (the one in BC) has 2 locations of Afuri Ramen, one in Richmond and one in Vancouver proper.  I've had differing experiences with the Vancouver one being better in my opinion.  Now, I got the chance to compare with the one of the locations in Portland (the spicy Afuri Kara Kurenai), right next to the original Voodoo Donuts (yes, we did get some of those too, although Bluestar is better!).

Just like the last time I was in the Vancouver location, we tried the Buta Gyoza.  These dumplings were prepared textbook-style with a crispy and browned bottom.  As you can see in the picture, there was a uniformly crispy skirt which was nutty and aromatic.  The dumpling skin itself was thin and had bouncy elasticity.  Inside, the pork and leek filling was tender and juicy.  It was also nicely seasoned being sweet and savoury.

Before we got to the ramen, we had 2 rice bowls including the Purutoro Chashu Meshi and the Spicy Karaage Don.  For the chashu don, it was a collection of components that created a flavor explosion.  Beyond the buttery tender pork belly, we found the crunch and tang from the pickled veg and the brightness of the green onions.  This was further enhanced by the addition of tangy yuzu and umaminess from the nori.  As for the chicken karaage, it was plentiful with a crunchy exterior and juicy meat.  The spicy mayo and chili sauce was medium in heat and added plenty of flavoring for the rice.  Add in the pickled ginger, nori and green onions and we had some of tang, brightness and umami to complete dish.

Onto the ramen, a visit to Afuri wouldn't be complete without ordering their signature Yuzu Shiro Shoyu Ramen.  If you've read my previous posts about this bowl of ramen, you know it isn't my personal favorite.  But after all these times, it has started to grow on me.  This time around, the chicken broth was super light and fragrant with the brightness of yuzu.  Was it any different than before?  Probably not, but for those who don't want a heavy tonkotsu broth, this is the way to go.  The thin noodles had a good chewiness and elasticity even while sitting in the hot broth.  There was some super moist sous-vide chicken breast chashu as well as a perfect custardy egg.

Moving from light and mild, we went to the Yuzu Kara Kurenai Ramen in also a chicken broth, but with the addition of yuzu spiced miso, chili powder and spicy menma.  We weren't in the mood to have our tastebuds being scorched, so we went for medium hot for this.  That was actually perfect as the spice level was noticeable, but at the same time, we could taste the richness of the miso and even some background brightness from the yuzu.

Now my favorite bowl here at Afuri is hands-down, the vegan Hazelnut Tantanmen.  Yes, that is not a misprint.  Despite being vegan, this bowl of noodles has all the texture and flavors to make up for the lack of meat products.  Beyond the chewy thicker noodles, the spicy miso tare added salty and sweet depth.  Tying it altogether was the hazelnut broth that gave each strand of noodle a delicious nutty and aromatic hug.  But wait, there was more!  The miso cashews only amped the nuttiness and umaminess of the dish and let's not forget the spice too as it also had some kick.  This was not lacking in impact.

We had one last bowl of noodles and this was the Kara Kurenai Tsukemen.  Also known as "dipping noodles" this dry ramen came with a spicy shoyu tsuyu.  As you can see in the picture, this sauce meant business.  We chose medium hot again, but this time, due to the concentrated nature of the dip and the amount coating each noodle, there was some real tongue-numbing instances.  This had most of the same components as the soup version except with thick noodles for dipping.

At Afuri, they also have a selection of Cocktails and we tried Yuzu Limeade, Ube Colada, Housemade Ginger Ale and Mai Thai on Fire.  Naturally, I gravitated to the non-alcoholic and refreshing drinks more.  They did a good job in cooling down my mouth from the spiciness.  I did enjoy the Ube Colada.  It was light and sweet from the pineapple juice. The Mai Thai on Fire was exactly that with serrano pepper infused rum.  It also had some orange liqueur and lime juice for balance.  Overall, this experience at Afuri was quite good.  In addition to some of their classics, they spiced it up figuratively and literally.  If you want so heat in your ramen and drinks, this is the place to be.

*All food and beverages were complimentary for this blog post*

The Good:

- If you want it spicy, it can be really spicy

- Spacious room

- Solid eats

The Bad:

- Seating is quite communal, so if that isn't your thing...

Toya Ramen & Bar

Finally breaking out of the streak of Thai restaurants in Portland, we moved onto a different Asian cuisine with Toya Ramen & Bar.  This modern noodle bar is Japanese-inspired, which is key to the overall understanding of the menu.  They take food in all sorts of creative directions and although they have some of the classics available, there are re-imagined plates as well.  We were excited to try some of their creations as well as taking in the energetic vibe and cocktails.

We began with some small plates including the fantastic Miso Eggplant.  This was full of umaminess with smoky and sweet notes.  There was a slight tang to it that made things appetizing.  Although the eggplant was tender, it was not mushy.  The crunch from the bubu arare added the necessary texture.  We also had the 5pc Hawaiian Kanpachi that was dressing in ponzu jelly, jalapeno and sansho oil.  The buttery pieces of fish were fresh and bright. There was some balanced saltiness with herbal notes and sweetness.  Burdock and seaweed on top came through with crispiness.

We then had the Crispy Gau Gee (or deep fried dumplings).  Although one would think this shape of dumpling and its preparation was only beneficial in saving time and effort, the results were actually quite good.  The outer wrapper was crispy and fairly light without being greasy.  The star of the show was the pork & cabbage filling.  It was moist and tender with some juiciness.  The seasoning was on point with equal parts sweetness and saltiness.

Before we got to the noodles, we tried their Lan-Roc Farms Tonkatsu featuring a panko fried duroc pork cutlet, cabbage, toya "57" sauce and takuan.  Fully-cooked through, but still juicy and tender, the pork cutlet was coated in a crispy layer of panko.  It was quite good on its own but the sauce on the side some tangy spice.  Loved the pickles (takuan) on the side as well as the sesame seed slaw.  It was rather aromatic and provided some relief from the fried panko.

Starting with something more traditional, we had the Shoyu Black.  This looked the part and also tasted the part with a silky chicken broth that wasn't too heavy, but not short on umaminess either.  Naturally, the black garlic oil did some of the heavy lifting with sweetness and almost smokiness.  The ajitama egg yolk was custardy while the egg white was delicate.  Torched and buttery, the pork chashu melted in my mouth.  Noodles were al dente as well.

From here, we moved onto something fusion with the Spicy Tom Yum Men.  Yep, we really didn't get away from Thai food with this meal.  Not complaining as I love Tom Yum!  For this bowl of noodles, the soup base was a clear chicken broth infused with tom yum.  I found it medium-flavored and spiced.  I definitely could've done spicier, but they provided some extra spice on the side.  The lemongrass component really came through being aromatic and gingery.  Noodles were firmly al dente and held up to the soup.  The sous vide chicken breast was supremely tender and juicy while the pork was equally tender.

We had an off-menu item in the Duck Ramen.  We are always game for some duck broth and this one delivered with a mild silkiness giving way to natural duck aroma. Unlike some versions, the duck broth was not salty.  Rather, it featured inherent umaminess and background fall flavors.  The sous-vide duck was perfectly tender as well as the sous-vide chicken.  For this bowl, we found thin ramen that worked beautifully with the duck and the broth.

They also have a selection of soupless ramen and we had a couple including the OG Abura Soba.  If you've ever had Kokoro Mazesoba before (lots of international locations), you would know exactly what this bowl is about.  With chewy noodles topped with shoyu tare, allium oil, onsen egg, pork chashu, green onion, nori and menma, there was more than enough components to ensure umaminess with a peppery and savory flavor profile.

The other soupless ramen we tried was the Caronaramen with onsen egg, chicken butter, speck, black pepper, parm and pecorino.  Yes, this did eat like an actual carbonara except with ramen noodles.  The noodles were firmly chewy and when mixed with the egg, resulted in a creamy and silky coating spiked with the saltiness of the speck and cheesiness of the parm pecorino.  Add in the black pepper, and we had a slight bite as well.

We had 3 desserts including the Hojicha Gelato, Black Sesame Cheesecake and Panna Cotta.  Of the 3, my favourite was the was the cheesecake as it was rich and creamy with a sweet nuttiness.  As for the panna cotta, it was thick and had real umami with the combination of salty miso, peanut butter and chocolate.  Lots of sweet and salty here with the rich taste of chocolate.  I really enjoyed the taste of the gelato as it was nutty and sweet.  I wished it was creamier though.  Overall, the food at Toya was delicious and the fusion aspect worked well in my opinion.  Great place to grab drinks, meet with friends and have some eats.

*All food and beverages were complimentary for this blog post*

 The Good:
- Solid eats
- Good cocktails
- Nice vibe

The Bad:
- I would've liked the Tom Yum to be spicier, but you can get extra on the side (also understand that that you can add flavor but can't take it away)  

Sang Nuua Catering

Of all the blog posts I've ever done, this would be the most unique of them all.  So after I had visited Portland in November, I got a message from Sang Nuua Catering asking if I was interested in trying out their catering services.  Yep, I was definitely interested, but there were a few issues.  First, I don't live in Portland and second, wouldn't we need a kitchen?  The first problem was solved quickly as I was heading down to PDX with the fam.  Second problem was alleviated since I was staying somewhere with full kitchen facilities.  Since plates and utensils were provided, we had nothing else to worry about.  Hence, we made arrangements for the fam to try their Pan-Asian dinner.

We started things off with the Vietnamese-Style Glazed Wings.  Chef Aurora has worked at the famed Pok Pok and Nong's Khao Man Gai, so she knows a thing or 2 about Thai cuisine.  Hence, it was by no surprise that the wings were fried up crispy, but were super juicy and tender inside.  The fish sauce caramel was pungent being briny, sweet and garlicky.  I thought this was a great start.  My only wish is that the wings were darker in color (for aesthetics, as it made no difference in the eating enjoyment).  It is true that it is more difficult to get a darker color with rice flour though.

Next up was the Green Papaya Salad served with sticky rice on the side.  This was a fairly large portion, just like the chicken wings.  This meal could serve more than 4 people in my opinions (stay tuned for the rest of the dishes).  Fresh and crunchy, the salad featured julienned green papaya, green beans and tomatoes.  The dressing was sweet, briny and plenty tart that was an excellent appetizer.  It only whet our appetites for the rest of the meal.

We moved from that onto 2 salads including the Thai Steak Salad (can be had as Mushroom for those who are vegetarian).  This sported a considerable amount of tender strips of steak that were first seared, then stir-fried in herbs and seasoning.  It was then plated with Thai basil, onions and cilantro in a spicy dressing.  The result was essentially an all-meat dish that was sort of a "salad".

Chef Aurora then proceeded to fry up some eggs (Fried Egg with Vegetables) in oil until they were crispy on the outside, but still fluffy on the inside.  These were served on a bed of greens with fish sauce dressing.  Not a complex dish by any means but super tasty nonetheless.  I love eggs, so this was a textural delight to go with the fresh crispy greens.  Of course the dressing was at its briny and fishy best with sweetness and some acidity.

One of my favourite dishes was the Turmeric-Fried Catfish over rice noodles and herbs.  The fish was fried up beautifully where the color was appealing and the texture was buttey soft.  Lots of flavour from the marinate itself, but it didn't hurt that we had a spicy pineapple sauce to go with it.  Normally, catfish can taste quite muddy, but this was kept to a minimum.  Rather, it was more naturally sweet than anything else.

Lastly, we were served the Whole Roasted Bird (that was dressed and put into the oven at the start) served with GinGar sauce and sweet garlic sauce.  Slathered with hoisin and 5-spice, then roasted with herbs, the chicken was aromatic.  The skin was crispy while the meat was moist, even the breast.  Loved the gingar sauce as there was both ginger, garlic and scallions.  But really, the sweet garlic was pretty rad too with lots of fresh garlic.

For dessert, we were served something simple and refreshing in a sliced ripe Mango.  Overall, the food prepared by Chef Aurora is restaurant-quality, but served at your choice of venue.  Ingredients are fresh and prepared beautifully.  The amount of food is enough for more than 4 people.  So there we had a lot of leftovers, but Chef Aurora packed-up everything for us.   As mentioned by Chef Aurora, a kitchen isn't necessary for her catering services.  The menu would just be altered for the venue.  However, I wanted the full-meal deal and ensured that my hotel had a full kitchen.  I guess an Airbnb would work for this purpose as well.  Whatever the case, I am glad we got to experience this.  Totally spoiled with delicious food!

*All food for this blog post was complimentary*

The Good:

- Lots of food!

- Impactful flavors

- Beautifully cooked proteins

The Bad:

- To get the full-experience, a full-kitchen with enough counter space would be ideal

 

Dough Zone

After returning from Vegas, I spent all of one day back home before heading down to Portland once again.  Yep, I was just there in November, but was so happy with the eats we had, I was itching to return.  So I took the fam this time and had some eats along the way that I didn't even take pictures of!  I know, the horror!  But once in Portland, I was staying in Downtown near the river.  Since I was pretty tired from driving, we ended up just walking 2 blocks to the nearby Dough Zone.  If this name seems familiar, yes, it is the same chain that started in Bellevue, WA!

One things for sure is that this location is nicest of bunch, being the former high-end location of Lucier.  We did endure a short wait as it was a Friday night.  Since the portions aren't big here, we went ahead and ordered many items including the Five Spice Beef Shank.  Sliced razor-thin, the meat was easy to eat and really tender.  Loved the gelatinous quality of the meat and also the impactful braising liquid that had a nice star anise hit.  The same sliced beef shank appeared in the Beef Pancake Roll, which made it good in that respect.  As for the green onion pancake portion, it was quite flaky and light despite looking thick.  Not sure if I enjoyed all that lettuce in the roll though.

We got the Sweet & Sour Cucumber just so we had some veggies (I know that is a stretch).  They were crunchy and marinated enough so there was a tang without being too acidic.  The spice was actually quite mild. up the ante with the veggies, we got the Kale with Sesame Dressing just for good measure.  This was actually the biggest portion of anything we had ordered.  A bit ironic, but welcomed nonetheless because it not only gave us more leafy greens, it was pretty delicious too.  In addition to the nuttiness of the sesame and the sweetness added to the dressing, we also got hits of garlic and the crunch from the peanuts.  Since the kale was lightly blanched, it was still crisp, but wilted enough so it was tender.

Off to the Xiao Long Bao, we had both the Berkshire-Duroc Pork Soup Dumplings as well as the Pork & Crab Soup Dumplings.  We universally liked the pork dumplings more than the one with crab.  We felt that the crab gave the dumplings too much brininess that obscured the natural sweetness of the fatty pork.  The pork filling was moist and tender while the soup was sweet.  I found the top twirl of the dumpling skin to be fairly firm, but the rest was thin and delicate.

We also got the Pan-Fried Berkshire-Duroc Pork Buns which were really good.  Often, the layer of bun can be overly thick and doughy, but this one had a thin bun that was fluffy and light.  The airiness of the bun allowed for the pork filling to be front and center.  Not unlike the XLBs, the filling was moist and juicy.  In fact, there was soup to be found, just like the XLBs.  To get all of the menu, we got the Pan-Fried Dumplings (Potstickers) for good measure.  These featured a medium-thick skin while the pork filling was pretty much on par with the other dumplings.  The bottom was fried up crispy with a noticeable skirt.

For our noodle selection, we ordered both the Dan Dan Mein and the Spicy Beef Noodle.  These bowls were quite small and not enough to share.  However, I really didn't want to share the dan dan noodles because they were really good.  The noodles were al dente and dressed with a nutty and spicy sauce.  As for the beef noodles, the soup was quite mild.  The noodles were chewy and the beef was tender, albeit in small pieces.

For myself, I wanted to try the Berkshire-Duroc Pork Wontons in Chili Sauce.  Well these were decent with tender wontons that were soaked in a mildly-spicy sauce that was smoky with elements of saltiness and vinegariness.  Overall, the food at Dough Zone was as expected (I've been to various locations many times).  Most dishes were decent and some were quite good.  However, the portions were rather small.  Loved the waterfront location for this one in Portland.

The Good:

- Decent eats

- Swank location

- Good XLBs

The Bad:

- Small portions

Carioca Bowls

Initially, I was a bit apprehensive when we had Carioca Bowls on our schedule while visiting Portland.  Not that I want to eat burgers everyday, but healthy food and delicious aren't often mentioned in the same sentence.  However, I was about to find out that my fears were unwarranted as their bowls and smoothies were both appealing in appearance and delicious in taste.  How about that?  I could actually like some healthy bowls...

So before we got to those bowls, we tried all the available Superfood Smoothies including the Classic, Verde, Azul and Forza.  Despite 3 of them being a similar color, they were all unique in their own way.  I particularly enjoyed the verde due to the tropical fruitiness of mango and pineapple.  This was also true for the azul with blueberries and peaches, but it had another layer of sweetness from the dates.  With almond butter, this had a bit more body.  With the addition of peanut butter, both the classic and forza were thick and nutty while balanced off by the açai.

Off to the bowls, they all were comprised of one of the following bases: Rio (açai, strawberries, blueberries & banana), Ipa (açai, peanut butter,  blueberries, chia seeds & banana), Copa (açai, strawberries, blueberries, banana, lions mane & coconut milk) and Mar (açai & coconut sugar).  For their classic Carioca Bowl, it featured a Rio base with nut-free granola, sliced banana, strawberries & blueberies.  As you could expect, this was a fruity and refreshing concoction.  This ate fairly light and was blessed with natural sweetness from the fruit.  The Rio base was a carbon copy of the ingredients, hence, it matched really well.

With more body, due to the use of the Ipa base, the Ultra ate more heartily.  It was comprised of nut-free granola, sliced banana, strawberries, almond butter, dates and pumpkin seeds.  This was mainly a protein bowl and the heaviness of the base and ingredients made it filling.  Definitely not as light and fruity as the Carioca Bowl, but still had a bright component to balance off the richness of the peanut butter in the base and the almond butter.

Continuing on with more robust bowls, we had the Yogi consisting of both the Ipa and Copa bases, nut-free granola, sliced banana, strawberries, peanut butter, toasted coconut, cinnamon and coconut oil.   We already knew that the Ipa base was pretty robust, but with the addition of peanut butter, this was quite the meal, especially for breakfast.  However, if you wanted more than just fruit, this would be it.

Other than the original Carioca Bowl, my favourite of the bunch was the Pollinator with a Mar base, nut-free granola, sliced banana, kiwi, raspberries, bee pollen and honey.  This was definitely up my alley due to the fruity tang of the raspberries and kiwis.  The mar base provided some more bright fruitiness while the bee pollen added some floral sweetness.  Of course the crunch from the granola added some texture.

The Rose City Bowl was something a bit different as it featured a Rio base with hemp granola, sliced banana, strawberries, raspberries, Honey Mamas chocolate pieces, and Jem nut butter drizzle.  Yah, this was quite the creation with hits of fruit, sweetness from the chocolate crunch and richness of the nut butter.  This was yet another filling creation that would satisfy even the biggest appetites.

In addition to their smoothies and bowls, we also tried their Avocado Toast as well as the Brazilian Cheese Bread.  As you can see in the picture, this was a very different avocado toast.  It contained vegan sauce and hemp seeds.  Hence it had an earthy and nutty thing going on.  Possibly a bit of fermented taste to it too.  It was not lacking in flavor.  As for the cheese bread, the regular ones were just like how I like them - cheesy & chewy.  The vegan version was a bit more dense and had a slightly saltier taste.  Overall, I really did enjoy the bowls and smoothies, mostly due to the fresh fruit and the delicious bases.  This turned out to be the thing we needed to cleanse ourselves for the next batch of upcoming restaurants.

*All food and beverages were complimentary for this blog post*

The Good:

- Fresh quality ingredients

- More healthy than most other meals

- It actually tastes good!

The Bad:

- Some of the more protein-focused items are rather heavy, but it is par for the course

Khao Moo Dang

Here we go again on another foodie road trip.  This time it is with Jacqueline, Roanna and Eileen as we hit up Portland for its eclectic eats.  Our first destination after a 5+ hour drive was a little Thai spot on Hawthorne called Khao Moo Dang.  It has this hawker vibe to it where the food definitely reflects this.  Dishes are of the simple variety, but at the same time, looking quite tasty.  Prices are reasonable and the portions are generous.

We got a bunch of things to share including some drinks to start.  These included Cha Yen, Lychee Hibiscus Juice, Mango Ice Tea and Cha Ma-Nao.  Starting with the Thai Ice Milk Tea, it was sweet as expected, but just enough.  It was rich and creamy.  The lychee hibiscus juice was the most refreshing with the essence of lychee.  Mango ice tea was tropical while the lime ice tea was super light and tangy.  That was the most refreshing of all.

Onto the food, we had 3 soup noodle dishes starting with the Ba-Mhee Tom Kha.  As expected, this was spicy and tangy with plenty of depth and aromatics.  The noodles were both soft and chewy at the same time.  Very appealing texture and soaked up the delicious broth.  This came with a perfectly-cooked soft-boiled egg, crispy pork belly and pork loin.  With a firm and crunchy crackling, the pork belly was fantastic.  Buttery soft meat and only minimal fat.  I found the pork loin to be tender despite being lean.

Along the same lines, the Ba-Mhee Tom Yum featured all of the same ingredients except for the broth.  In classic Tom Yum fashion, the flavors were spicy and sour without the creaminess of coconut milk.  However, it was still plenty flavorful with the same fragrant ingredients as the Tom Kha.  The egg was overturned in this picture as we did some noodle pulls and as you can see, the noodles were not clumpy.

Moving onto the Ba-Mhee Pi-Set, this was a bit different as there was no broth.  Rather, we found the classic Khao Moo Dang sauce (the name of the restaurant!) smothered on top.  This was in an interesting shade of pink/orange (a bit lighter than I'm used to), but was a good balance of sweet, savory and aromatic.  The noodles were a bit chewy due to the lack of broth and for this dish, we found pork dumplings and Chinese sausage in addition to the trio of ingredients of the previous bowls.  The pork wontons were juicy with a bounce texture while the sausage was sweet, juicy and sticky.

As much as many of the dishes have both Thai and Chinese influences, the Ba-Mhee Moo-Ob Haang looked very familiar to me.  This featured 12-hour braised pork shoulder with egg noodles, yau choy, soft-boiled egg and bone broth on the side.  This was somewhat like beef brisket on noodles, but instead with pork.  About that pork, it was fall-apart tender and lightly sweet.  The little side of braising liquid added moisture and meatiness to the noodles.

 

From noodle dishes, we went to our first rice item in the Pad Ka Phrao featuring wok-fried minced pork shoulder with basil.  This was not very saucy as you can see in the picture.  Hence, it allowed the rice to remain chewy while still providing some moisture and plenty of aromatic meatiness to the dish.  When mixed together, the meat and rice was textually-pleasing.  This also came with a soft-boiled egg.

So here we have the signature dish - Khao Moo Dang.  This featured all of the meats including pork loin (where the sauce is based on the marinade), Chinese sausage and crispy pork belly.  The mound of rice was covered in the Khao Moo Dang sauce which was sweet with just a touch of tang.  Again, loved the crunchy pork belly and also the sweet Chinese sausages.  Overall, the food at Khao Moo Dang isn't overly complicated and in fact, has many of the same components.  Yet, this simplicity allows for delicious hawker-style Thai dishes that are both tasty and reasonably-priced.

*All food and beverages were complimentary for this post*

The Good:

- Simple and delicious hawker-style food

- Reasonably-priced

- Good portion size

The Bad:

- Menu is fairly large, but many items are recycled (nature of the food and keeps costs down)